All You Need Is Cash

On a tiny budget, but with a hilariously clever and knowing script,
Eric Idle and Neil Innes labored to create the story of The Rutles in
a movie for NBC Television called All You Need Is Cash. The
TV film was originally intended as a late-night special, perhaps to
fill in for NBC's Saturday Night on one of its weeks off.
NBC was so taken with the project, though, that they moved it to
prime-time. The budget wasn't increased in response to the move,
but Idle's experience doing Rutland Weekend Television on
a chat show budget would pay off here.

An album of music from the show was expected to be released on Arista
Records (which had both the Python troupe and Neil Innes under contract
in the United States). Amazingly, another Beatles connection arose
and changed all that. Former Beatles Press Officer Derek Taylor had
moved to the United States several years earlier and was now a Vice
President at Warner Bros. Records. He knew about the Rutles TV movie
project, and convinced his company to pick up the album from Arista.

Derek Taylor put his immense experience at promotion to work on the
Rutles album. Marshalling the impressive might of Warner Bros.
Records, he put together a breathtakingly massive promotional
campaign. He became Rutles Press Officer Eric Manchester. Although
Michael Palin played the role of Manchester in the All You Need Is
Cash, Taylor actually was him, writing and issuing press releases,
and generally getting the word out. It is Taylor that was responsible
for the impressive album package. He gave the project a budget large
enough to do it big.

The LP was issued on February 24, 1978, in a gate-fold cover with a
full color 18-page booklet inside
detailing the history of The Rutles. (Or should I correctly say
that Warner Bros. issued a booklet, which was accompanied by a
free LP?) Also part of the package was a full-color LP sleeve with
lyrics, credits, and other Rutles-related material, all in color.
There was nothing off-the-shelf about the project. The album was
also released on 8-Track tape and
Audiocassette.